Unemployment: Manufacturers Target 15 Million New Jobs By 2020

August 10, 2017

Latest statistics have it that the manufacturing sector is presently growing at an average growth of 8.5 per cent but that this would peak at 10.6 per cent by 2020 leading to the creation of the new 15 million jobs.

Nigeria’s manufacturing sector is targeting to grow by 10.6 per cent and create over 15 million new jobs to solve the lingering unemployment problem in the country, if the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) is implemented to the letter.

From Manufacturers Association of Nigeria’s (MAN)’s statistics:

The creation of 15 million new jobs by 2020 is also expected to reduce the unemployment rate from 13.9 per cent in Q3 2016 to 11.23 per cent by 2020.

MAN’s recent review of the last quarter of 2016 revealed that an estimated 1.63 million historical cumulative jobs were created in the manufacturing sector at the end of 2016.

Based on the information gathered from the various surveys conducted by MAN over the review period., a total of 10,061 manufacturing jobs were created in the second half 2016 as against 9,393 jobs created in the corresponding half of 2015, thus indicating an increase of 668 jobs over the period.

Food, Beverage and Tobacco sectoral group was reported to have accounted for most of the jobs created in the manufacturing sector as it created 2,947 jobs in the second half of 2016.

A total of 4,408 jobs were reportedly lost in the period under review as against 12,400 jobs lost in the preceding half, thereby indicating 7,992 decline over the period.

The agricultural sector with an average growth of 6.9 per cent over the Plan period would support the effort through self-sufficiency in rice and wheat in 2018 and 2020, respectively.

The Nigerian government is however, optimistic that the operational electricity capacity would grow by at least 10GW by 2020 to boost the real sector and other job creating efforts of the citizens.

This was one of the important tasks the ERGP recently launched by the Muhammadu Buhari administration aims to achieve in its medium term plan.

The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma believes that, the ambitious ERGP, if well executed, will aid manufacturing sector average growth of 8.5 per cent, peaking at 10.6 per cent by 2020, while the real GDP growth of 4.6 per cent over the Plan period will increase to 7 per cent rate by 2020.

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Unemployment: Manufacturers Target 15 Million New Jobs By 2020 was last modified: August 10th, 2017 by Anibe Idajili